The Pilate Inscription is the only known occurrence of the name Pontius Pilate in any ancient inscription.
Visitors to the Caesarea theater today see a replica, the original is in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
There have been a few bronze coins found that were struck form 29-32 AD by Pontius Pilate.

The Pontius Pilate Inscription is important in the study of Biblical Archaeology
and confirms the Scriptures found in the Bible as historical.

Matthew 27:1-2 "When the
morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people
took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: And when they had
bound him, they led [him] away, and delivered him to Pontius
Pilate the governor."

Luke 3:1-2 "Now in the
fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate
being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and
his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of
Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene, Annas and
Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the
son of Zacharias in the wilderness."

The Roman historian Tacitus mentions Pontius Pilate only in
passing when noting "the execution of Christus, author of that
sect, by the procurator Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius."

Along the Mediterranean coast in the provincial capital of Caesarea was the
grand theater which hosted extremely popular events such as chariot racing
and gladiator games.

A Dramatic Reenactment of Historical Events

Near a special section for dignitaries, in between flights of steps along a
nearby aisle, was a landing area with damaged stones that honored guests
would be stepping over on their way to and from their seats. It became an
embarrassment, and could no longer be tolerated. If anyone of importance
were injured, there would be a severe penalty for those in charge.

The orders came down. Make the necessary repairs. But the limestone of
original construction was produced centuries ago and no longer available for
any reasonable price. The question for the foreman was how to remedy the
situation in a cost effective and timely manner without troubling his
superiors.

“With no mountains to quarry, we will excavate from the glory of Rome’s
past.” said he.

An unattended temple was under demolition to make room for gods more in
vogue. A dedication stone from an unremembered governor to a now un-feared
Caesar was located with good dimensions. But should such an official stone
be used?

“Does Tiberius care from his grave?” the foreman mocked. “I serve a living
Caesar whose friends will arrive this week for the games. That ancient
Praefect of Judea has already been awarded more honor than any mortal
deserves. Use the stone!” he laughed.

The workmen then cut the stone in half, using a two-foot by three-foot slab
to repair the landing. The repair was good, lasting for hundreds of years.
Guests traveled up and down the stairs, resting upon the repaired landing
and taking in a momentary panoramic view they continued on their way up
down.

Historical Fact

Centuries later, and having exchanged hands throughout the crusades, the
city of Caesarea was finally destroyed in 1265. With the aqueducts
disassembled and the city laid waste, the middle eastern winds buried
Caesarea beneath eight centuries of sand dunes.

In 1959, a group of Italian-sponsored archaeologists began to excavate. Two
years later a curious stone was uncovered on the landing, in between flights
of stairs, bearing the name of Pontius Pilate, Praefectus of Judea, thus
ending a long standing debate concerning whether a central character
mentioned in the biblical narrative ever even existed.

That issue was settled. Yes he existed.

The Procurators of Judaea

The following list of the procurators of Judaea
is based on Marquardt (Romische Staatsverwaltung, I, 409, 412) and
Schurer (Geschichte des judischen Volkes (4), I, 485-585):

Coponius (6 AD to circa 10 AD)

M. Ambibulus (circa 10-13)

Annius Rufus (circa 13-15)

Valerius Gratus (circa 15-26)

Pontius Pilatus (26-35)

Marcellus (probably 35-38)

Maryllus (38-44)

C. Cuspins Fadus (44-46)

Tiberius Alexander (46-48)

Ventidius Cumanus (48-52)

M. Antonius Felix (52-60 or 61)

NOTE.-Marquardt gives his name as Claudius Felix, supposing that he
was a freedman of Claudius and therefore took his nomen (Suetonius,
Claudius xxviii; Victor, epitome iv, 8); but there is stronger
evidence in support of the belief that Felix was a freedman of
Antonia, Claudius' mother, like his brother Pallas (Tacitus, Annals
xii.54; Josephus, Ant, XVI11, vi, 4; XX, vii, 1, 2; XX, viii, 9; BJ,
II, xii, 8), and accordingly had received the praenomen and nomen of
Antonia's father (Josephus, Ant, XVIII, vi, 6).

The
Black Obelisk. In the 1840's a British man named Austen Henry
Layard had a desire to travel to the Middle East and dig around some of
the strange looking mounds near the City of Mosul. He had heard many
tales about things being found in these mounds. He was looking for any
trace of evidence that would lead him to the lost city of Nineveh, the
capital of the ancient Assyrian Empire. Little did he know that one of
his discoveries would turn Europe upside down with excitement. He
discovered a black limestone monument which is known today as The Black
Obelisk of Shalmaneser III. This discovery brought a new authenticity
and historicity to some of the stories in the Bible. It also gained him
the support of the British Museum, and all the finances he needed to
continue his excavations, and become known as "The Father of
Assyriology."

The
Pilate Inscription. It
wasn't long ago when many scholars were questioning the actual existence
of a Roman Governor with the name of Pontius Pilate, the procurator who
ordered Jesus' crucifixion. In June 1961 Italian archaeologists led by
Dr. Frova were excavating an ancient Roman amphitheatre near
Caesarea-on-the-Sea (Maritima) and uncovered this interesting limestone
block. On the worn face is a monumental inscription which is part of a
larger dedication to Tiberius Caesar which clearly says that it was from
"Pontius Pilate, Prefect of Judea."

The
Megiddo Seal Bearing King Jeroboam's Name.
It is very interesting that the Jasper Seal, found at Tel Megiddo
bearing the name of King Jeroboam who ruled in the Northern Kingdom of
Israel, would contain the symbol for their rival, the Southern Kingdom
of Judah. But in examining all of the circumstances involved and seeing
what the Bible says it is no wonder that the prosperous and victorious
Northern Kingdom of Israel would boast with a symbol of their enemy.

The
Tomb of Cyrus the Great. An inscription on the tomb of the great
Persian monarch read: "O man, whoever you are and wherever you come
from, for I know that you will come--I am Cyrus, son of Cambyses, who
founded the Empire of the Persians and was king of the East. Do not
grudge me this spot of earth which covers my body." - Cyrus".
Is it true that Isaiah the Hebrew prophet mention Cyrus by name almost
200 years before he was born?

Sennacherib's
Hexagonal Prism. This amazing discovery excavated in Nineveh in
the 1830 records the Assyrian king Sennacherib's 8th campaign, which
includes his siege of Jerusalem during the reign of "Hezekiah the
Judahite" in 701 BC. There are 500 lines of writing in the Akkadian
language on this magnificent clay prism. Is the story true that it was
purchased by an American from an antiquities dealer in Baghdad?

Coming SoonThe Ishtar Gate of Babylon.
During the last days of the southern kingdom of Judah the Jews were
taken captive to a distant land called Babylon at the latter part of the
6th century BC. They passed through a beautiful entrance gate made of
mud brick masonry and glazed skin which stood 47 feet tall, commonly
referred to as the Ishtar Gate since its discovery at the turn of the
20th century near modern Baghdad, Iraq. The tall gate was dedicated to
the gods by Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylonia who reigned from 605—562
BC). Is it true that Hitler had it transported to Berlin? Where is the
Ishtar Gate now?

The Bible mentions many
things about people, places and events that happened in history. The
Bible also gives an accurate chronology of those people, places and
events. What is amazing is that modern archaeology has confirmed that
the Bible has never made one error, or given any clear contradictions in
all of its text in matters of historical fact. The paintings and
illustrations below of archaeological discoveries and ruins illustrate
this emphatically.